The Capitulation of Alexandria in September 1801 brought the

French invasion of Egypt and Syria The French invasion of Egypt and Syria (1798–1801) was a military expedition led by Napoleon Bonaparte during the French Revolutionary Wars. The campaign aimed to undermine East India Company, British trade routes, expand French colonial ...

to an end.

Background

French troops, who had been abandoned by

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

who left for France never to return, had been defeated by British and Ottoman forces, and had retreated to

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

where they were besieged. On 30 August 1801 the French general Abdullah Jacques-François Menou offered to surrender and proposed terms, which were considered, partly accepted and in many details amended, by the British general John Hely-Hutchinson and admiral Lord Keith.

Text

The text of the Capitulation is printed in full in Robert Wilson's ''History of the British expedition to Egypt''. Each article as proposed by General Menou is followed by a comment: the proposed articles as amended by these comments form the capitulation as it was finally put into effect, bringing the conflict to a formal end on 2 September 1801. The document is signed by

General-in-Chief General-in-chief has been a military rank or title in various armed forces around the world. France In France, general-in-chief () was first an informal title for the lieutenant-general commanding over other lieutenant-generals, or even for some ...

Menou, Admiral Keith, Lt.-General Hely-Hutchinson, Lt.-Col.

James Kempt General Sir James Kempt, ( – 20 December 1854) was a British Army officer, who served in the Netherlands, Egypt, Italy, the Peninsula, and British North America during the Napoleonic Wars. He led a British brigade at the Battle of Waterloo and ...

, and the

Kapudan Pasha The Kapudan Pasha (, modern Turkish: ), also known as the (, modern: , "Captain of the Sea") was the grand admiral of the Ottoman Navy. Typically, he was based at Galata and Gallipoli during the winter and charged with annual sailings durin ...

Küçük Hüseyin Pasha Küçük Hüseyin Pasha (1757 – 7 December 1803), also known as Tayazade Damat Küçük Hüseyin Pasha, was an Ottoman statesman and admiral who was Kapudan Pasha (Grand Admiral of the Ottoman Navy) from 11 March 1792 to 7 December 1803. He wa ...

, representing the Ottoman forces.

Transfer of Egyptian antiquities

Under Article 16 of the capitulation "the Arabian manuscripts, the statues, and the other collections which have been made for the French Republic, shall be considered as public property, and subject to the disposal of the generals of the combined army." This led to the transfer to British possession of the

Rosetta Stone The Rosetta Stone is a stele of granodiorite inscribed with three versions of a Rosetta Stone decree, decree issued in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty of ancient Egypt, Egypt, on behalf of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes. The top and middle texts ...

and other Egyptian antiquities collected by the French ''

Commission des Sciences et des Arts The Commission des Sciences et des Arts (''Commission of the Sciences and Arts'') was a French scientific and artistic institute. Established on 16 March 1798, it consisted of 167 members, of which all but 16 joined Napoleon Bonaparte's campaign ...

'' and the scholars of the '' Institut d'Egypte''.

Spoils

At the Capitulation, the British discovered the French warships ''Cause'', ''Egyptienne'', ''Justice'' and ''Régénérée'', and two former Venetian frigates in the harbour of Alexandria. The British and their Turkish allies agreed a division of the spoils. The British received ''Égyptienne'', ''Régénérée'', and "Venetian No. 2" – named by the French ''Léoben'' (ex-Venetian ''Medusa'') – of 26 guns. the Ottomans received the 64-gun ''

Causse The Causses () are a group of limestone plateaux (700–1,200 m) in the Massif Central. They are bordered to the north-west by the Limousin and the Périgord uplands, and to the east by the Aubrac and the Cévennes. Large river gorges cut through ...

'' (ex-Venetian ''Vulcano''), ''Justice'', of 46 guns, and "Venetian No. 1" – ''Mantoue'' (ex-Venetian ''Cerere'') – also of 26 guns. The Turks also received some Turkish corvettes that were in the harbour. Admiral Lord Keith commander of the naval forces, gave the value of ''Régénérée'' for prize money purposes at £16,771 13 s 6 d.

Notes

References

External links

*{{commons-inline 1801 treaties Conflicts in 1801 French invasion of Egypt and Syria Military history of Alexandria 1801 in Egypt Treaties of the French First Republic Treaties of the Ottoman Empire Treaties of the United Kingdom (1801–1922) August 1801 19th century in Alexandria Rosetta Stone